Problem moving data to new machine

[McBain]

A week or so ago I started a thread about my PowerBook's logic board dying. Now I'm getting a new machine and I'd like to get everything up and running as quickly and efficiently as possible.

The hard drive from my PowerBook is fine and I have an enclosure for it. I want to get all my data and settings transferred to my new machine. Ordinarily, I gather you could use something like Carbon Copy Cloner to make a clone of the hard drive on the old machine and then put that on to the new machine and that would be that.

My question is, is there any way I can do this if all I have is the hard drive in an enclosure?

Related to this, when OSX asks you if you want to transfer data over from an old machine when setting up a new install, can you do it from an external drive, or do you need to do it from the intact machine? Could I just attach my old hard drive at transfer data and settings over from that?

If anyone has any ideas on this, I'd love to hear them.

 

[deebster]

The idea of cloning IS copying a Mac's HD to another drive, not another Mac directly. So, if you have a cable and your HD in an enclosure you are good to go.

However, if posssible I would resist the temptation to clone the PB's HD to a new Intel Mac, as there will be differences in the files required by PPC and Intel systems. (I'm assuming here that your 'new' machine will be new new).

I would install the OS as normal and maybe copy over your Home folder. You could copy the main Library too (the one at root level, not in your Home folder), but not over the top of the newly created one. Instead keep it around on your new HD and as and when any app or setting plays up you know you can dig in there and maybe utilise a preference file or somesuch.